Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

। व्यास उवाच पृथ्वीपुरंध्यास्तिलकं ललाटे लक्ष्मीलतायाः स्फुटमालवालम् । वाग्देवताया जलकेलिरम्यं नोहेरकं संप्रति वर्णयामि

Transliteration

| vyāsa uvāca pṛthvīpuraṃdhyāstilakaṃ lalāṭe lakṣmīlatāyāḥ sphuṭamālavālam | vāgdevatāyā jalakeliramyaṃ noherakaṃ saṃprati varṇayāmi

Translation

Vyāsa nói: Nay ta sẽ miêu tả Noheraka—như dấu tilaka trên vầng trán của Địa Mẫu cao quý; như luống đất trong trẻo, phì nhiêu nuôi dây leo của Nữ thần Lakṣmī; và như cuộc vui đùa nước diệu kỳ của Nữ thần Ngôn Từ (Vāk)—một thánh địa rực sáng công đức và vẻ đẹp thanh tịnh.

Word by Word

• vyāsaḥ: Vyāsa
• vyāsaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vyāsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular), परस्मैपद

• pṛthvī-puraṃdhyāḥ-tilakam: the tilaka (forehead-mark) of the earth-bride
• pṛthvī-puraṃdhyāḥ-tilakam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pṛthvī (प्रातिपदिक) + puraṃdhī (प्रातिपदिक) + tilaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (Genitive determinative): ‘पृथ्वीपुरंध्यायाः तिलकम्’

• lalāṭe: on the forehead
• lalāṭe: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: lalāṭa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन (Singular)

• lakṣmī-latāyāḥ: of the Lakṣmī-creeper
• lakṣmī-latāyāḥ: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: lakṣmī (प्रातिपदिक) + latā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive/6th), एकवचन (Singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः: ‘लक्ष्म्याः लता’

• sphuṭa-māla-vālam: the clearly-visible root-bed (of the creeper)
• sphuṭa-māla-vālam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sphuṭa (प्रातिपदिक) + māla (प्रातिपदिक) + vāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular); कर्मधारयः (descriptive): ‘स्फुटं (स्पष्टं) मालवालम्’

• vāk-devatāyāḥ: of the goddess of speech
• vāk-devatāyāḥ: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vāk (प्रातिपदिक) + devatā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive/6th), एकवचन (Singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः: ‘वाचः देवता’

• jala-keli-ramyam: delightful with water-sport
• jala-keli-ramyam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: jala (प्रातिपदिक) + keli (प्रातिपदिक) + ramya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular); तत्पुरुषः: ‘जलकेलिः’ (water-sport) + विशेषण ‘रम्य’

• noherakam: Nohēraka (proper name/place)
• noherakam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: noheraka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular)

• saṃprati: now, at present
• saṃprati: Kriya-vishesana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: saṃprati (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक-क्रियाविशेषण (temporal adverb)

• varṇayāmi: I describe
• varṇayāmi: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: varṇ (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), उत्तम-पुरुष (1st person), एकवचन (Singular), परस्मैपद

Speaker

Vyāsa

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Noheraka

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: A king (rājan / nṛpaśreṣṭha)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Vyāsa as narrator, seated in a forest-āśrama, begins a eulogistic description of Noheraka; the landscape is imagined as Earth’s brow adorned with a tilaka, with lotus ponds suggesting Lakṣmī’s fertile creeper-bed and playful ripples evoking Sarasvatī’s water-sport.

Characters & Entities

• Vyāsa
• Pṛthvī (Earth)
• Lakṣmī
• Vāk-devatā (Sarasvatī)
• Noheraka

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A holy place is praised as an ornament of the world—its beauty signifies its power to bestow auspiciousness and dharmic merit.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Noheraka, presented within the Dharmāraṇya Māhātmya as a renowned sacred locality.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly in this verse; it serves as an introductory glorification before detailing merits and practices.